


A Moment of Peace

by Deannie



Series: Two Gentlemen of Atlantis [6]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-05
Updated: 2013-11-05
Packaged: 2017-12-31 11:51:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1031403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deannie/pseuds/Deannie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rodney really needs to thank the man who saved John Sheppard's life. If only he weren't so bad at names...</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Moment of Peace

**Author's Note:**

> Tag for the episode "38 Minutes."

Zelenka.

Zelenka, Zelenka, Zelenka, Zelenka.

Rodney spoke the name in his head like a mantra, walking mindlessly toward the northeast lab. He'd been kicked out of the medical bay and, tired as he was, he was still too wired to sleep. And he should really thank the Czech (whose name he should definitely remember while thanking him) for isolating that subroutine, because if he hadn't, Rodney would be dead right now. And so would everybody else--well, everyone in the puddlejumper, anyway. Including Major Sheppard.

Major Sheppard wasn't dead, though. He wasn't dead--and while Carson had been guarded when he said he'd be okay, he was guarded in that way that Carson usually was when he talked about patients he'd pulled from the brink. Hedging his bets and all that.

But it was going to take time, and Carson had been very firm when he'd kicked Rodney out, telling him that he couldn't come back for at least four hours and he should "bloody well" get some sleep and a shower and something to eat during that time. But a shower just didn't appeal, and he was afraid he'd throw up if he tried to eat, and he'd already covered the sleep thing with himself, and so now he was standing at the doors of the northeast lab--

\--and damnit, he'd forgotten the Czech's name again!

Zilka? No, Zilny. Zarkon? Fuck.

Rodney thought about turning right back around and going back the way he'd come, because really, how did you thank someone for saving your life when you couldn't even remember his name? "Thanks so much for making sure I didn't asphyxiate. It was wonderful of you to care so much about my well being. Oh yeah, what was your name, again?"

Didn't really cut it, did it?

He should just leave, he thought. Just go and do what Carson told him and get some sleep and a shower and check the Czech's name again and come back later. And all of this ran through his mind in the bare second it took for the door to open and the man in question to bowl right into him, nearly knocking him to the ground.

"I'm so sorry," Rodney's savior said quietly, reaching out a hand to steady McKay, whose body had suddenly realized that near-death and low blood sugar didn't mix well with bodily collisions. The wild, mad-scientist hair and owlish eyes floated in front of him for a moment before his own natural asperity kicked in.

"Thanks. Really. It's always nice to thwart death only to be knocked unconscious by your coworkers."

Zilniki, or whatever his name was, drew himself up to his surprisingly small height and sniffed in irritation. "I did not see you, standing right in front of a closed door as you were," he snapped back.

Okay, this was getting off on the wrong foot. Wasn't Rodney supposed to be thanking him or something? The world tilted slightly, and Rodney felt that hand on his arm again as all snark left the Czech's tone.

"I am sorry, Dr. McKay," he repeated, more sincere this time. "Are you all right?"

Rodney waved off the concern as his moment of tilt-a-whirl concluded. "Low blood sugar. Nothing to worry about." Not when there was so much else to worry about, anyway.

His companion nodded, but he didn't let go of Rodney's arm. "I see. I was on my way to the commissary. Would you like to join me?"

Bile rose in Rodney's throat, but he swallowed it down. Passing out from hunger was only going to ensure that he drew resources away from Major Sheppard. And that was just not an option. So he nodded and fell into step with his fellow scientist as they headed back the way he'd come.

The way he'd come when he was going to thank this guy for saving his life.

"Um... Thank you, by the way." He verbally hurried on as the other man shot him a questioning look. "You know, for isolating that subroutine. Because without that, I probably could have tried everything--well, everything right up until the point where I blew the jumper up. But then we wouldn't have needed that subroutine anyway, so..." his babbling trailed off of its own accord.

His companion (Shit! Why couldn't he remember his name!?) smiled just a little and said, very quietly, "You're welcome."

They walked on in silence for a few minutes until they reached the nearest transporter, and then the other man turned to him and asked casually, "How is Major Sheppard?"

"He's fine," Rodney replied quickly, trying to convince himself. "Carson said he'll be fine. Hell of a hickey, but fine." Totally fine. He'd only been... dead... for a minute. He couldn't have brain damage or anything, right? Just the thought made Rodney a little weak-kneed, and he suddenly found a hand on his arm again, steadying him.

"Are you certain I should not call Dr. Beckett for you?" his companion asked, again in that quiet voice. Or was he quiet because of the buzzing in Rodney's ears?

Shaking his head wasn't a very smart move, and he gratefully let the supporting hand move him to lean against the wall while the world took another wild trip around his head.

"No," he replied after a moment. "No, they're, um... busy. Just... food. Now, I think."

The other scientist nodded and ushered him into the transporter that was, thankfully, on the direct line to the commissary. They walked out into a nearly empty room, which suddenly made Rodney wonder what time it was. He gazed out at the deck that overlooked the ocean (well, actually, every deck in Atlantis overlooked the ocean, didn't it?) and saw the sun-drenched tables and chairs. Somehow, though he knew it had been daytime when they returned to the city, he thought it should be night by now.

It had already been a very, very long day.

"I believe there is still some of what they choose to call lunch."

Rodney brought himself back to the present at his colleague's pronouncement. Food. Right.

It seemed harder than it should have been to get his food and watch the other guy get his food and walk with him out to the sundeck and sit down, but once Rodney got some of the truly awful spaghetti in his mouth, he felt instantly better. Ah, the joys of complex carbohydrates!

"We have learned much about the jumpers' systems in the last few hours," the Czech said, obviously trying to start a conversation. Rodney swallowed the huge mouthful of food he'd been working on and tried to join in.

"Yeah. Trying to solve a life-or-death situation will do that." And how sad was it that Rodney knew that from more than one experience?

"Yes."

...And that was really all the guy was going to say.

Wow, Rodney thought wryly. That might be the shortest conversation on record.

"So, um..." He grasped at mental straws. "How did you isolate that subroutine, anyway? I was trying to go through every permutation of the system I could think of, but..." He shrugged and shoveled more food into his mouth.

"Yes. An explosive situation to be sure," the Czech agreed briefly. "It was, of course, not that difficult in the jumper bay."

And then, turning Rodney's image of him as The Silent Mad Scientist completely on its head, the guy launched into a very animated, very detailed explanation of everything he'd done. And Rodney sat and listened and occasionally added a comment here and there and decided that he'd been almost prescient when he'd looked at Zeledka's file and thought that he'd be a real help on the Atlantis mission.

Zeledka! That was his name!

Satisfied with his own amazing memory, Rodney missed something Zeledka had said, which caused the man to stare at him for a very long moment.

"Sorry, what?" Rodney asked, all his usual acid in his tone, now the world had stopped spinning and his stomach was full.

"I said, I hope Major Sheppard will recover quickly."

Did he have to sound so pedantic? Rodney was hardly a child. And what was that weird look in his eyes?

"He'll be fine," Rodney replied, actually believing it this time. "Just another in what's sure to be a long line of death-defying antics from Captain Kirk."

He thought for a second that maybe Zeledka wouldn't get it--he was Czech, after all. Did they get Star Trek in the Czech Republic? But Zeledka smiled a weird half-smile, rising and taking hold of his tray of half-eaten food.

"I should get back to work. You should rest, yes?"

Rodney nodded. It had been nice to just... forget for a few minutes. But a few minutes was apparently all his mind was giving him, because his worry for Major Sheppard suddenly came surging back to him. Which was stupid. Carson had said he'd be fine, and he'd be fine.

Completely fine.

Rodney willed himself to calm down again and regain the momentary peace that talking shop with another passionate scientist had given him. That was another thing he had to thank Zeledka for, wasn't it? He looked up to do just that, and found his companion already halfway through the commissary on his way to the transporter.

"Hey, Zeledka!" he called, causing the other man to whirl around, looking a little surprised. "Um... really. Thanks."

Zeledka smiled warmly. "You are welcome, Dr. McKay," he said quietly before turning back toward the exit. His parting words drifted back to Rodney, making him blush in embarrassment.

"And it is Zelenka."

Zelenka.

Zelenka, Zelenka, Zelenka, Zelenka.

God! He was never going to remember that name!

* * * * * * *  
The End


End file.
